Listing the hardest games we've beaten (no braggado)
Feb 11, 2023 0:58:24 GMT -5
Post by Ex on Feb 11, 2023 0:58:24 GMT -5
Top 20 Hardest Games I've beaten legitimately.
This is part 2 of 2, including the last 10 games.
This is part 2 of 2, including the last 10 games.
This means beating the games on real hardware (no save-states), not using strategy guides or walkthroughs, no Game Genies/GameShark/Pro Action Replay, no codes or cheats of any sort. Not using Easy mode. Simply beating the games legitimately on at least Normal difficulty via personal grit alone.
Ace Combat: Joint Assault (PlayStation Portable) 2010
I have beaten every Ace Combat game with the exception of the PS4 one (which is on the docket). Every Ace Combat game I've beaten I would rate at "moderate difficulty", these aren't particularly hard games. With the exception of Joint Assault. In this AC entry enemy jets defy the very laws of physics, literally able to warp around your missiles, or dance out of the way of your bullets. It's like you're in a normal jet fighting aerial ninjas armed with supernatural ninpÅ. If this doesn't sound fair, that's because it's not. Not even remotely. Rather Joint Assault ends up being an extraordinarily infuriating experience. One mocking the idea of a realistic combat flight simulator. This game made me rage to put it nicely, and if I didn't love my PSP so much it would have gone on a flight simulation of its own.
I have beaten every Ace Combat game with the exception of the PS4 one (which is on the docket). Every Ace Combat game I've beaten I would rate at "moderate difficulty", these aren't particularly hard games. With the exception of Joint Assault. In this AC entry enemy jets defy the very laws of physics, literally able to warp around your missiles, or dance out of the way of your bullets. It's like you're in a normal jet fighting aerial ninjas armed with supernatural ninpÅ. If this doesn't sound fair, that's because it's not. Not even remotely. Rather Joint Assault ends up being an extraordinarily infuriating experience. One mocking the idea of a realistic combat flight simulator. This game made me rage to put it nicely, and if I didn't love my PSP so much it would have gone on a flight simulation of its own.
Everblue (PlayStation 2) 2002
When one thinks of SCUBA simulators, it's easy to imagine laid back serene gameplay. And often, that is what you get. It's true that Everblue has gentle reefs to explore full of colorful tropical fish. But it also has deep, pitch black sunken wrecks to explore. And explore them you must, if you want to beat the game. These incredibly dark subterranean mazes can be daunting to navigate (and you're often doing it in a six-axis manner), but it's made doubly so by the fact you can run out of air. Oh and sometimes there are sharks, rather large, particularly hungry sharks. Now you can see how the experience can be a nightmare. Desperately trying to escape a dire maze, lungs burning with your air tank on empty, and a massive predator sniffing you out. Did I mention the entire experience is in first person? That greatly enhances the immersion, for pleasure and pain.
When one thinks of SCUBA simulators, it's easy to imagine laid back serene gameplay. And often, that is what you get. It's true that Everblue has gentle reefs to explore full of colorful tropical fish. But it also has deep, pitch black sunken wrecks to explore. And explore them you must, if you want to beat the game. These incredibly dark subterranean mazes can be daunting to navigate (and you're often doing it in a six-axis manner), but it's made doubly so by the fact you can run out of air. Oh and sometimes there are sharks, rather large, particularly hungry sharks. Now you can see how the experience can be a nightmare. Desperately trying to escape a dire maze, lungs burning with your air tank on empty, and a massive predator sniffing you out. Did I mention the entire experience is in first person? That greatly enhances the immersion, for pleasure and pain.
F-Zero GX (GameCube) 2003
The F-Zero series is my all time most favorite racing franchise. So of course I had to beat GX. And beat it I did, and I don't just mean the Falcon campaign, I mean getting 1st place in every race, 1st place in every cup, for every difficulty. To do so takes phenomenal concentration with an error rate of zero. Absolute zero. You make one tiny mistake and the entire race is gone, perhaps the entire cup. Getting that good at GX was extremely difficult, but all these years later I've not played any racer since that provides the same level of exhilaration. Maybe the real reason we've not had another F-Zero in twenty years, is because GX is the actual apex.
Front Mission 5: Scars of the War (PlayStation 2) 2005
I love SRPGs and have beaten quite a few of them. My favorite SRPG series is Front Mission. Inevitably, I ended up beating FM5 as a result. Let me tell you in no uncertain terms, this is not an SRPG for inexperienced strategists. FM5 is completely unapologetic about lacking a difficulty curve, because it's meant for series vets. As a series vet, I appreciated that. What I didn't appreciate was how difficult it was to level up and finance your wanzers. FM5 provides alternative methods to do this (as opposed to just beating missions alone - that won't cut it), a roguelike mode and an arena primarily. I didn't care for those two things, so I had to become an expert at the Linking maneuver to win. It would take a while to explain all the reasons FM5 is balls hard and the minutiae of linking. I'll just say, if you consider yourself good at SRPGs here's your huckleberry.
I love SRPGs and have beaten quite a few of them. My favorite SRPG series is Front Mission. Inevitably, I ended up beating FM5 as a result. Let me tell you in no uncertain terms, this is not an SRPG for inexperienced strategists. FM5 is completely unapologetic about lacking a difficulty curve, because it's meant for series vets. As a series vet, I appreciated that. What I didn't appreciate was how difficult it was to level up and finance your wanzers. FM5 provides alternative methods to do this (as opposed to just beating missions alone - that won't cut it), a roguelike mode and an arena primarily. I didn't care for those two things, so I had to become an expert at the Linking maneuver to win. It would take a while to explain all the reasons FM5 is balls hard and the minutiae of linking. I'll just say, if you consider yourself good at SRPGs here's your huckleberry.
Ghouls 'n Ghosts (Genesis) 1989
You may have noticed I've not listed many 2D platformers/action-platformers in my list so far. Where are all the NES platformers Ex? It's not because I haven't beaten many of them - no, I've beaten loads of them. Rather it's because most 8/16-bit action-platformers are only "pretend hard". Let me explain. These games are objectively difficult initially, but here's the secret; they don't change. Their level layouts, enemy placement, boss patterns... it's all static. They pretend to be brutally difficult, but because it's the same experience every time, eventually you master them by sheer memorization and muscle memory. Basically, it's like playing video games as Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. When you know what's coming every second of the experience, eventually the "difficulty" becomes diluted. So why am I including Ghouls 'n Ghosts then? Because to beat this one legitimately, you have to beat it twice in a row - within the same game session. Thus the difficulty is artificially inflated, with your patience and concentration tested doubly. The vast majority of "really hard" action-platformers do not do that, making this one a true kick in the nads.
You may have noticed I've not listed many 2D platformers/action-platformers in my list so far. Where are all the NES platformers Ex? It's not because I haven't beaten many of them - no, I've beaten loads of them. Rather it's because most 8/16-bit action-platformers are only "pretend hard". Let me explain. These games are objectively difficult initially, but here's the secret; they don't change. Their level layouts, enemy placement, boss patterns... it's all static. They pretend to be brutally difficult, but because it's the same experience every time, eventually you master them by sheer memorization and muscle memory. Basically, it's like playing video games as Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. When you know what's coming every second of the experience, eventually the "difficulty" becomes diluted. So why am I including Ghouls 'n Ghosts then? Because to beat this one legitimately, you have to beat it twice in a row - within the same game session. Thus the difficulty is artificially inflated, with your patience and concentration tested doubly. The vast majority of "really hard" action-platformers do not do that, making this one a true kick in the nads.
Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (PlayStation 2) 2004
The fact that the #1 most lauded feature of SMT3's recent "HD Remaster", is not sharper graphics or voice dubbing, but rather the inclusion of the Merciful (easy) mode... says everything. The original Nocturne is the very definition of an uncompromising JRPG, even on Normal difficulty. Oh it doesn't start off so hard, nah. For a while SMT3 plays nice with its players, giving them some hope and fun. But then the Matador shows up and locks the gate. He'll only let the most hardcore RPG players through, the rest get bounced. I'll wager 90% of SMT3 players never made it passed Matador's rude awakening. There are ways to make SMT3 easier. Like for example, playing it on Merciful mode and/or using a strategy guide (a nice way of saying "letting someone else beat the game for you"). I had none of that help when I beat SMT3, and I'm so very glad I didn't. I can count on one hand how many games have given me white knuckled, sweaty palmed, heart racing boss battles. Nocturne is not only on that tiny list, it's also the only turn-based JRPG on it.
System Shock (DOS) 1994
System Shock is an FPS/RPG hybrid, one of the first of its kind... and still the toughest. What makes System Shock initially daunting is its interface. This game's interface is like learning how to interact with an alien world with alien appendages. And that's just interacting with the game world, there's an entirely different interface for the virtual reality areas. With gargantuan maze-like levels, vicious enemies, tricky puzzles, and an overtly high difficulty level, System Shock never gets easier. When this game first released, the gaming magazines at the time called it "a thinking man's DOOM". And that's a fair description. This is a very ingenious game, designed by very intelligent designers, for very smart gamers... unapologetically so. It's also an entirely unique experience, one that I strongly recommend to fans of both action-RPGs and FPS. There is a remake coming soon that may streamline the interface, but hopefully not the challenge.
The Scheme (PC-88) 1988
This is an exploratory action-platformer, and calling it a "primitive Metroid" wouldn't be out of place. Although The Scheme is superficially similar to Metroid, I found The Scheme to be more difficult than any Metroid. Primarily this is due to how large the world of The Scheme is. It is over 500 unique screens large, with non-recursive obscure level layouts. To beat this game, I did resort to hand drawing a detailed map to keep track of where I was. (Yep, there is no in-game mapping system.) Couple the confusing path finding with truly esoteric progression systems, and you're in for a tough time. For example, sometimes you will reach an area that seems like a dead end, but it's because your level isn't high enough. Come back later with a higher level, and all of a sudden that dead end wall is now an open tunnel. The Scheme is full of unintuitive stuff like that. Not to mention the best upgrades are hidden in ways that are simply devious. Like shooting a particular wall for over two minutes until an upgrade suddenly materializes. If there's one reason I stuck with The Scheme, it's because of its excellent Yuzo Koshiro FM OST. Loved that. But I can only recommend The Scheme to truly ardent fans of tough "metroidvanias".
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter (PC) 2006
Please notice this is the PERSONAL COMPUTER version of this game. The console versions are entirely different. The console versions were developed by a different developer entirely than the PC version. Now that we've got that distinction out of the way, allow me to agonizingly reminisce about the most difficult FPS I've ever beaten. On second thought, just read my review: gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/926946-tom-clancys-ghost-recon-advanced-warfighter/reviews/155881 Whenever I read people writing about how hard arcadey console shooters can be, I shake my head and think, "son I dare you to play the PC version of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter". If nothing else, it will recontextualize what FPS difficulty means for you going forward.
Please notice this is the PERSONAL COMPUTER version of this game. The console versions are entirely different. The console versions were developed by a different developer entirely than the PC version. Now that we've got that distinction out of the way, allow me to agonizingly reminisce about the most difficult FPS I've ever beaten. On second thought, just read my review: gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/926946-tom-clancys-ghost-recon-advanced-warfighter/reviews/155881 Whenever I read people writing about how hard arcadey console shooters can be, I shake my head and think, "son I dare you to play the PC version of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter". If nothing else, it will recontextualize what FPS difficulty means for you going forward.
Viewtiful Joe (GameCube) 2003
This game offers two difficulties. One is called Kids. The other is called Adults. Yes you are correct, I beat this game on Adults. Viewtiful Joe is basically a 2D beat 'em up at heart. Except it has aerial fighting and a really heavy focus on combos. Also it's really, seriously, absolutely bordering on ridiculously, I daresay ludicrously difficult. At least it was on Adults difficulty, I can't speak to how Kids plays. Viewtiful Joe expects its player to maintain pure unadulterated precision attention, without that, forget it. What really makes Viewtiful Joe a part of my top 20 list is its end game boss rush. Viewtiful Joe has the most psychotic end game boss rush I've ever endured. Don't get me wrong, this is a great, very fun game. That's why I stuck with it. Well that, and I wanted to prove I was an Adult.
This game offers two difficulties. One is called Kids. The other is called Adults. Yes you are correct, I beat this game on Adults. Viewtiful Joe is basically a 2D beat 'em up at heart. Except it has aerial fighting and a really heavy focus on combos. Also it's really, seriously, absolutely bordering on ridiculously, I daresay ludicrously difficult. At least it was on Adults difficulty, I can't speak to how Kids plays. Viewtiful Joe expects its player to maintain pure unadulterated precision attention, without that, forget it. What really makes Viewtiful Joe a part of my top 20 list is its end game boss rush. Viewtiful Joe has the most psychotic end game boss rush I've ever endured. Don't get me wrong, this is a great, very fun game. That's why I stuck with it. Well that, and I wanted to prove I was an Adult.